A Deep Dive into U.B. Funkeys

[@bloxyjola6040]

hey so this video is INSANE and i love it, im a fucking nerd and LOVE UB FUNKEYS but there are a few things you got wrong that i wanna correct!!!! 1. you said hidden realm was the last zone added to wrap up the lore, it was actually paradox green 2. you said that there was only gonna be one more adventure pack when there was going to be at least two, one for the dreamstates figures and one for the hidden realm figures 3. sadly i do not believe the bones skateboard made it past concept art 4. dot had 2000 made, not 700 5. in the second tajeo ebay listing, you mention that there were 3 other speed racer figures, not shown at any toy fair, the thug figure and the royalton figure are speed racer figures, and were shown at the new york toy fair 2008 i believe? but the blue teddy bear is a rare maul from paradox green. the common and rare figures for paradox green were never released. 6. you mention that the trunk and loot was added with the chat funkeys in the dream states update, this is false, it was added between hidden realm and paradox green 7. you mention familiars dont have a use in game, they do! they allow you to enter a funkeys zone and game room without owning that funkey. this was especially useful for the people who didnt get dot. Basically its a portal jammer you can use more than once but only on a specific zone and gameroom. 8. you said tajeo and tach have inaccessible gamerooms, this is false, tach has no game room, but speed racer has an unreleased variant that had a different minigame in his gameroom 9. you say dali's animation is broken, it is not! dali is a flower that burrows underground, and this animation triggers even as an npc 10. presumably they got pretty close to dc releasing, as there was an early trailer used to advertise it alongside hidden realm, then it got pushed back to paradox green, and then they were forced to scrap it all together, as they only had time to finish up paradox green and put it out as one final thank you to the fans. (this is also why there are no physical common or rare figures of paradox green funkeys) 11. there is more unused and beta footage lying around, jeff, bless his heart, shared confidential reference sheets for unreleased funkeys, and on the old ub funkeys website (only accessible via the wayback machine) has videos advertising minigames that use beta footage of said games. 12. you say adults should not try this game, this is incorrect. im sorry im like this.

[@bjiru_]

ooooh fuck. I knew I would get a few things off, My apologies for these things, some of it I could of researched better, and some like the dali animation are just me being fucking stupid XD, thank you for the correction of everything, and being so kind about it :3, Im glad to see other U.B funkeys enthusiasts :3

[@herodoesstuff]

its rly cool to see someone so well versed and passionate abt this game and its history, ty for sharing these corrections :D

[@bloxyjola6040]

@@bjiru_ no youre not stupid im just clinically insane

[@bloxyjola6040]

@@herodoesstuff also hell yeah no prob man im your go to guy for ub funkeys facts

[@bjiru_]

@@bloxyjola6040 hahaha, well I appreciate, still- Ill pay more attention to detail in my research in the future 👍

[@Greencumulon]

This game taught me how to read, and how to get robbed.

[@cheesecakelasagna]

I was so scared to get robbed as a child that I was lowkey happy my server/world was bare. 😅

[@Korilakkumastanno.1]

😦

[@astrei_cat]

UB Funkeys will always have a special place in my heart, it is the combination of all of the inmaculate aesthetics of the 2000's, thank you for posting this video!!!

[@cakehoarder]

i still remember walking into a store as a kid and seeing an ultra rare blue panda funkey... what a rush

[@lunamazin4454]

My partner is a huge collector of merch from the 2008 speed racer movie and they thought they collected everything related from the movie. That was until I found the speed racer ubfunky. I’m so proud that I found something they didn’t know existed :)

[@Parzivle]

I loved these little fuckers. We weren’t so well off when I was a kid so my brother and I each had one only one or two little fellas a piece. I really enjoyed exploring the little worlds and doing that early 2000s virtual interior design.

[@vhstape5643]

I feel like so many adults would play this today. I'm 20 years olds and I remember staring at the demo disk I got from Wendy's for probably literal hours looking at the characters on it and having nowhere to actually insert the disk. I feel like I missed out. It was certainly something I was interested in, just not something I was able to ever get around to. Hopefully the company who made these realizes that people my age are still playing video games more than ever.

[@chibi_bb9642]

as a kid i would lick my funkys, changing it into various funkys i didnt own. idk why it works but i would do it again and again until my big funky was out of commission. was fun

[@neonthunder3261]

what the hell?

[@chibi_bb9642]

@@neonthunder3261 it was a fun bug lmao

[@BenMclean007]

Oh my god I am so happy to hear that I wasn't the only one to discover this! You'd get like a short period of time before it changed back, so you'd have to race to a minigame or explore as fast as possible

[@bloxyjola6040]

ub funkeys had lead in them. we're going to get brain damage but we will have it in in solidarity.

[@r8934]

If you didn't do this did you even play UB funkys? I only used this to get through the doors in the hidden realm, as well as I think I got into deuce's game once

[@hellofellowbotsss]

R.I.P the funkeys bjiru sold for ps3 money We thank you all for your sacrifices

[@abiotic_sloth1768]

I have some of these guys sitting in my closet. I never had the heart to get rid of them bc I love their design so much, but I barely even played with them. I very vaguely remember even playing with these, but I had such little access to the family computer and, being a kid, I never could remember my passwords and my parents were too busy to check their emails for the reset code. But this video has sparked me to go and uncover these relics of the early 2000s

[@bjiru_]

go give them some love :3, I hope they are still in good condition

[@themoldeater]

my experience with this game as a kid outside of the US/Europe was heartwrenching because I loved it so much and kept seeing youtube videos about update content that didnt release on my region and kept endlessly searching for it on my game and ultimately losing hope

[@bjiru_]

Aww that is heartbreaking 😭

[@DragoDactyl]

Feel ya man, I was so hyped about the henchmen funkey and finding a way to access the stuff at the hidden realm back in the day but I just couldn't, no matter how much I begged my parents for the toys since they couldn't do anything :c

[@sniperdoge44]

"Do you recognize this guy?" No but bjiru video so uhrm i am staying

[@pepperthe2008]

Ye

[@hellofellowbotsss]

Hell ye

[@ThereminElectro]

Oh my GOD. You just reignited two core memories for me. The Funkies and Cube World. I LOVED both of those toys and am now going to hunt them down

[@MidnightMilkMan]

Bro I felt like such an idiot when I had these as a kid. They were such cool little ideas but my kid ass could not figure out how to do more than like 2 minigames and just never played it again

[@kolonarulez5222]

Funkeys walked so Skylanders, Lego Dimensions, Amiibo could run. I only have 1 of my former vast collection left: a red Rastro

[@rikkuato]

i feel like UB Funkeys shaped my entire personality.

[@bjiru_]

Well… you must be a pretty “”FUNKEY”” person then !

[@PaladinWat]

bjiru just wanted to say thanks because you recommended izzzyzzz’s channel in one of your previous videos and her videos are awesome too. ty for covering our cozy 2000s internet nostalgia!

[@bjiru_]

I’m so glad, love izzzyzzz

[@nandertga]

You made an entire video about U.B. Funkeys? on my watch list. It's funny how I watched the one on the virtual worlds while refactoring FunkeySelectorGUI.

[@ubvaleFG]

hello mai broda

[@FroggutztuggorF]

DUDE MY BROTHER LOVED THESE LITTLE GUYS!!! He had basically everyone’s common variants and the rare packs containing the pineapple king and Dr. Lox. weirdly enough he doesn’t have the main port anymore though. I think i still have an entire big box of them somewhere too!

[@abiotic_sloth1768]

I really really wish companies would make toys like this again. It's so fun and unique to have these crazy online worlds with their own line of little guys

[@gyrozeppeli5105]

This video dug up a relic in my mind. When I was a kid my mom never let me get one and I thought they were so cool. I completely forgot what they were and this video reminded me. Thanks

[@xProErax]

You have unlocked childhood TV advertisement for me I appreciate it good sir

[@wertia391]

I remember the little Wendy's demo CD and Funky with the branded "W" but I thought it was just some strange fever dream because I totally forgot what it was and hadn't seen it again, until now lol

[@bronxplaya]

I am almost 24, this game is my childhood and I am very sad that its offline now.. this game is a really special game and it hurts that its death

[@confusedterror7630]

This video made me buy some Funkeys, love the art direction of these little guys

[@bjiru_]

YESS ! INFLUENCE! thats my fav part too, they are akin to like bearBricks or vinyls like that, there so cool

[@ssscout]

I ❤ U.B. FUNKEYS

[@raspyApostle]

I had one of these lil dudes, stole it from the neighbor kid's house when we were playing Smash Bros Brawl, could never figure out what they were called after I lost it. The youtube recommendeds have blessed me with forbidden knowledge.

[@matrucious]

This was the first video I've watched from you, where I have no previous knowledge about the topic. I assume U.B Funkeys never reached my country. But it made it even more enjoyable, as I am used to your top tier video standards (which this was of course no exception), but actually learning about a whole new topic along with it was so much fun! Great stuff as always!

[@bjiru_]

Oh wow that’s interesting to hear! Thanks as always for watching :3, always love to see your comment :3

[@elkarlo1593]

I have a weird nostalgic collection of these things, because I never played the game, I never owned any of these, I just saw them at Walmart and wanted but could never afford the one that looked like a fish, I didn't even know there was a game attached to them until late last year, yet I remember them vividly

[@bjiru_]

aw im sorry to hear that, its time to play it now then ! !

[@piperkolafa8985]

Killer video--love your delivery and editing! I never seen these little guys before, they were a bit before my time I think, but I love their 2000s vinyl art-toy-esque look. So fun! Also I love the speed racer tie-in lol.. that era of 2000s remakes of 60s properties like that movie and Charlie's Angels was so strange looking back but I loved em all.

[@dinosaurpolitician3663]

I remember begging my parents to buy this after getting a Wendy’s toy, struggling to get it to run, and then getting so so scared of my Funkey getting dirty I had to stop playing

[@Nichslvl]

I still have just a tiny sliver of a memory of this game from one Christmas. I still have Lotus and Deuce somewhere in my closet. This whole concept of a game was so cool :(

[@dian5607]

i love this game as a child but it also scared me so much for the henchmen, i feared going outside the house for them, losing my hard earned coins as kid was a nightmare come true

[@Sailor-Khione]

I never played the game but I owned a twinx. I dunno why I only got the avatar character and not the big one that let me play this game. I also had the Wendy's bobble head and I wonder what happened to them. I loved them so I wouldn't have given them away

[@xofi.]

I didn't live in this era but I would have loved too, seeing what there was. I've played Club Penguin fan servers so I'm not completely out of the know with these things, but man, those must have been different times. Also the description of this video has a lot of little nuggets, the dancing Android logo was a huge surprise.

[@livvecchio]

I vividly remember having at least 3 of these lil guys. Specifically the speedometer for some reason? Thank u for the blast from the past😭

[@SerotoninSyd]

its funny, i distinctly remember owning Funkeys- i had the starter set. I remember the big guy and i think i had three little guys? but i have NO memories of playing the actual game. the gameplay sparks no memories for me...

[@dessyboon6637]

I wanted to play this game so bad so I had something in common with my classmates at school, but my mom wouldn’t buy any of the figurines for me so I couldn’t play. In my little kid brain it would be the thing to make them stop picking on me. These guys are still pretty interesting to me for their design.

[@bjiru_]

im so sorry friend, I hope you got some friends eventually that love you for you. screw those kids, Hope you are well these days

[@dessyboon6637]

@@bjiru_ I have! Thank you for checking on me :) it wasn’t all bad, I do have fond memories of making hair for the figurines out of silly putty when I went to a friend’s house who had a couple. I wonder why Webkinz was so much more successful than UB Funkeys considering they’re pretty similar in concept.

[@bjiru_]

@@dessyboon6637 aww thats so cool, glad to hear it wasnt all bad

[@chiciana]

ur editing style is so funky! (in a good way)

[@bjiru_]

Thank you so much YOU ARE FUNKEY ! ( I’m also a good way :3)

[@Ghetto_Smosh]

OH MY GOD I THOUGHT THAT THESE THINGS WERE A DREAM I HAD ONCE. Thank you so much for documenting this phenomenon.

[@emilyrose31]

I never played this game as a kid unfortunately, but I found out about these guys last year and I love their designs. I have a small collection that I got via thrifting. So far I only have one funkey and 2 hubs (the basic one and the one with the purple design). I actually saw a car at the thrift store that had a wendy’s funkey keychain hanging from its exhaust???

[@caitlyn1656]

20:50 **pushes button** "oh i'm gay now"

[@spasgettiz]

these things remind me of gogos crazy bones!!! i like them ive never seen these before :-]

[@cheesecakelasagna]

My sister and I got UB Funkey as a gift from a family friend from overseas (I'm from the Philippines). Lil me was so mad they bought us the exact same design. 😅 The huge dock has bamboo and dragon tattoo, and the little one is iirc army green something. I still have it in one of my drawers. Edit: I think that one you have at 12:12 but in army green!

[@joevon4958]

I remember UB Funkeys, my starter had the Purple Hub with the tribal tattoos. I also had the 2nd limited edition adventure native pack, funny enough I actually had trouble logging in that I never played the game at all and just had the funkeys lying around

[@cadecochran5788]

I feel so much shame that I forgot about UB

[@BoopSnootAndTroubleshoot]

Mines are LITERALLY in my bedroom in a box :) Growing up in Norway, I didn't speak English, as I was too young to have learnt it in school yet, so... I NEVER KNEW UNTIL NOW THAT THERE WAS LORE

[@aleandrovaccari6204]

can already tell this is gonna be a banger

[@cowmustard7848]

Can't wait to watch this! These made my childhood and looking back it still feels so witty and creative! It also thought me a lot of English as a non-native speaker. Just downloaded the game with the help of reddit and can't wait to earn all the trophies :)

[@12rats]

This is my favourite video ever I love your video style and genuine enthusiasm for funkeys, they're such cool little dudes

[@TurdleShell]

a friend of mine had a couple of these and i've seen him play once or twice. i didnt remember anything at all about the game but those amiibo ahh dolls are a core memory of mine. i still remember the way that plastic felt in my hands.

[@PatticusIV]

This just unlocked a core memory! I had the demo disk from Wendy's and played that thing endlessly. Never got a single actual Funky character, but I played the hell outta mahjong and decorated my crib over and over.

[@captchar]

I had SO MANY of these things as a kid. My mom gave them all away later, and funnily enough I got them all as a gift from my older cousin. This was my absolute favorite game ever at the time and I played it on Windows Vista on all the time.

[@willwastaken]

This game was my childhood

[@tr0jie224]

Floating

[@Candyrock15]

How did he get it to float

[@colonelofrky5065]

@@Candyrock15that’s just what the docks did. The cords were made to hold them up in a “floating” position. I’m honestly surprised he didn’t mention the function of the cord in the video.

[@50millionbees]

​@@Candyrock15 dark magic

[@scuffedharrypotter4733]

your passion for nostalgia is very relatable for me , these videos are great love taking memory lane back to these memories frfr

[@darrysaurus_rex]

Bro, I literally saw the thumbnail for this, and I did know what they were called until now. With the thumbnail alone, you've unlocked a core memory of when I was 5. Thank you do fucking much.

[@randoontheinternet5842]

Had so many nostalgic memories with this game, I remember wandering around different maps (especially the nightmare one), Decorating my crib, And getting absolutely terrified every time I saw a henchman

[@normal-mantis]

it’s funny how you are the best yotiuber. out of All of them

[@distantstorm5]

DUDE I also found the pineapple king pack at a zellers/ that brief time where target bought zellars in Canada before they abandoned it. I was so excited to have them, the pineapple king was my favorite. I sometimes still think about why my brain decided the pineapple kings backstory was something to be remembered.

[@Graph06]

I collected these as a kid and my dumb ass never realized they were for a computer game 💀

[@rusticgiraffe4262]

Ah, I had a few of these lil guys. Only half of mine worked, and I never actually got new ones at any point after I first received them all.

[@restlessparadox1953]

u UNDERSTAANNDNDDD MEE!!! u understand what i love about funkeys. this is an EXCELLENT DIVE!!!! THANK U BJIRU!!! i love ur genuine EXCITEMENT and investment in this game bro.. this is so awesome...

[@solgerWhyIsThereAnAtItLooksBad]

I never played the game, I just played with the toys. I did that for years after the game shut down even

[@lain_from_lain]

I found out about UB Funkeys through the Wendy's promotion. I happened to be at Wendy's with some of my cousins and two of us got demo discs. I ended up getting the full game later, my hub being the one with the purple designs, and I got a few characters: Bones, Drift, both common and rare Ptep (don't remember why), and Scratch. I don't remember how much of the game I played but I do remember being cut off from some areas due to not having enough Funkeys. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!

[@jawshyy]

The little big planet music in the background is amazing omg

[@holzycookie]

God I’m such a huge fan of U.B. Funkeys so this video was an amazing watch! Here in Australia, it definitely wasn’t the most popular thing in the world (legit have never met anyone (other than my cousins) who knew about the game in Aus). Only certain stores had figures, in which most of the time it was just the pack with the Hub in it, but occasionally we’d get cool stuff (because of this, my Mum often bought packs from eBay when new expansions came out). I remember being devastated that it was getting shut down, so I was very excited when I found out people had made a playable version a few years back. Since you asked in the description, I think my favourite Funkeys were Flurry, the snowflake one, and Lucky, the white one with the rainbow on it, though I owned the rare version which was black instead of white :) p.s. I noticed the Waddle Dee, Grub, and Rowlet plushies throughout the video and I just wanna say you have a good taste in games :D

[@bjiru_]

ah! your the first person to actually answer that! very good choices, I think flurry is my fav aswell, except the red one instead of the blue, I love it so much Thank you for noticing my plushie friends as well :3

[@commando6683]

Core memory unlocked

[@Gomitasd]

I still have the panda, the lava guy and the big one haha I had 2 of the cubes too but a few years ago a friend told me he never had them as a kid so I gave them to him.. kinda regret that

[@Shadownnico]

I remember having these as a kid and playing with them all the time! since the updates never made it to my country and I didn't have money for extra funkeys I ended up spending a lot of my time poking at the game's files to access some of the other minigames lol I also found out pretty early into my file poking how to make my funkey look like those evil camera guys... they were a bit glitchy but I didn't mind... it was cool and that's all that mattered...

[@bjiru_]

that is so cool. kind of good how it happend, made you learn a lot about the inner workings of games and flash n such I bet, thanks for sharing :3

[@Shayne-ny3wu]

They needed to shower because they be funky

[@jobibones]

I wonder if the dirtiness mechanic was to encourage you to switch Funkeys regularly?

[@FoxerTails]

Yoooo, I remember these! Always wanted one but never got to own one or play the game. I kinda want to get one of the figures now just to display.

[@magicaloid44_03]

I remember my grandparents having a collection of these for selling them on ebay

[@webkinz918123]

Thanks for making this video i felt like a lot of people need to know about these little guys they played such a big part in my childhood :)

[@ChildishLumbino]

good old days

[@_PHDFLOPPERGUY_]

This video was amazing, UB Funkeys will forever be a staple of my childhood 🫡🙏

[@backprints]

just said the title out loud right now and im amazed ive been waiting this video for what feels like my whole life

[@TheBenskuPro]

WE NEED MORE LIKES AND WATCHES i am happy that like a 1/3 ppl likes the vid.

[@bjiru_]

I am happy you liked it so much to say that :3

[@ri-ch-es]

This was peak, i remember the last time i visited my cousins place in like 2009 and he had maybe 6 of them. They were so cool. Id always seen the commercials and they were so cool

[@cesarvillalobos1692]

Man I eas so excited to ger my ub funkeys kit after seeing commercials for it all the time and it came defective. My parents never got me another one.

[@bjiru_]

aw man thats heartbreaking man

[@adamhawks3460]

BRO I still have all of my UB’s. I remember getting the Elder and the reaper looking main Villain as playable figures it was insane.

[@ubvaleFG]

good video dude, and NO, I DON'T EAT PIZZA WITH KNIFE AND FORK THAT SHOULD BE AN ATTACK AGAINST HUMANITY AND FOOD

[@sdg3363]

These are those things form my child hood that I remember playing, but couldn’t for the life of me remember what they were called and drove me crazy

[@nerdykitten1371]

I loved this game as a kid! And it was something that made me want to be a collector lol cuz, as you said, it’s fun to just have little guys

[@pizzapwner]

very frightened by the floating ub funkey. spooky!!! ahhh!!!!

[@bjiru_]

a ghost from tha 👻past 👻👻

[@mina9e]

took me over half the video to realize it's attached to a string and thought it was a cgi effect (weary face emoji)

[@pizzapwner]

YEEEOUCH!!!!!@@bjiru_

[@BigJoe-eo1cr]

one of the kids who couldn't get one of these but definitely saw commercials for them in the 2000s they where definitely pretty based.

[@PinkiMiki]

woah ur talking about my culture!! with videos about flash animations and UB funkeys!!! I have 14 funkeys AND I animate in flash!! ur like so awesum sauce!!

[@bjiru_]

>_< ‧͙* thx u s0 much ‧͙⁺˚*･༓ X3 X3 Im so happy so many people also love this old internet culture, thats why I make these to connect and be with my people thanks for being here :3 ;3 :3

[@ItssHexx]

I used to play this all the time !!! And I had so many I miss those days

[@8illy]

thnx for making this video - i had that same figure pack too haha

[@HurricaneBady]

I loved putting these figurines in my mouth when i was a kid

[@bjiru_]

would pin this if not for other pin

[@butterychalupa3633]

Ive been waiting for someone to talk about these things they were crucial to my childhood and no one knows about them

[@bonesmcbutterbeast5379]

When I was SUPER young, about 5 years old? I had this friend in school named Jake who was the popular rich kid of our school but also really nice. I remember going over to his house to play and he had UB funkeys! At the time, I had only ever seen some at stores probably. I was an LPS kid at the time, but I was immediately fascinated by the little guys. The reason I tell this story is because I swear I remember seeing him HAVE dc comics funkeys and a dot funkey. This was years and years ago, about 15+, and I wish I had contact with him today so I could ask how he got his hands on such things, but I guess I'll never know now :(

[@emilyrakov2340]

The nostalgia this activated in me...

[@knucklesskinner253]

can we agree that they had like mad liminal vibes!!! also futiger areo vibes. i remember in the speed racer area there being an entire empty hall way... very weird but its now a core memory of mine.

[@CwgMcthumb]

I’m glad I found more people who loved this game

[@thefloridaman6527]

God Damn! My First Video game 😍😍😍 Didn't think about it for 15 years so so.. That was simply amazing 😊

[@okate251]

insane that this is one of ur first youtube vids! excited to see more

[@tresmith5224]

I loved UB Funkeys when I was younger but my house didn’t have internet in the early 2000’s so the games features were super limited to me. I was unable to use all the characters I had because for some reason you needed an internet connection to be able to use more than 1 character.

[@randevsthirdeye]

my mind decided to bring these up at 3:53am right now after 15 years